Settling Down
by strangerpotter
Summary: Sirius Black never thought he'd be in love. At least not until he was old. Like thirty. He'd never been so happy to be wrong. SiriusxOC with some mentions of JamesXLily


Hello! This is for the **That's You! Challenge** by **D-Savano** with the **Mishy** category **and The Challenge and Competition for Hard-core Marauder Fans** by **Corpse in a Coffin** with the **AU #2** prompt. Once again, this fic ended up being _so_ much longer than I anticipated when I started it. Oh well. Enjoy!

* * *

No one ever really expects to fall in love when they do. In fact, it's usually the last thing on their mind. And then all of a sudden, oops, they're head over heels. At least that's what happened to Sirius Black. He never thought he'd be in love. At least not until he was old. Like thirty. He fully intended to continue his three year string of no strings attached relationships which he'd started in his fifth year. Lily protested that he only did this to hide from his secret need to be loved.

Psh, yeah right.

A few months after graduating Sirius, James, and Lily made plans at a bar that was a convenient meeting spot for all of them. Everything was normal, as if they were just hanging out in the Gryffindor common room and it was hard to believe they'd never do that again. Sirius was his usual carefree self, James was googly- eyed and practically drooling over Lily, who teased him relentlessly. They were all laughing at a joke someone made when Lily's eyes wandered across the room and lit up.

She grabbed his arm to get his attention, "Oh my gosh, James, look who just walked in."

He looked in the same direction she was and squinted while his mouth hung open slightly. "Oh yeah! Hey, what was her name again?"

"Corrie Robinson." Lily answered, getting to her feet. "I'll be right back, I'm just going to say hi."

Sirius followed her across the bar with his eyes, curious to see just who this girl was. Lily walked to the bar and stopped behind a girl who had only been sitting on a stool for a few seconds when she came over. The girl turned around and seemed to recognize Lily instantly and they hugged each other tightly.

The girl stood again and Sirius could tell that she was well over an average height for a girl her age considering that next to Lily, she looked slightly like a giant. And Lily wasn't a particularly short girl, either. But the girl she stood next to, Carrie or something, towered over her. She had a fairly tanned skin tone and long, wavy hair that was only just too dark to be blonde. It was parted to the side and had tips that reached past her shoulder blades with a small curl at the end. She seemed to be kind of 'rough around the edges', and what she wore only added to it. Ripped tights, black skirt, and a tight, white shirt with a low cut that was worn under a leather jacket. And to top it all off, combat boots.

Sirius could tell she was a tough girl who would just blow him off in an instant. And he was completely drawn to her.

"Oi, James." He said, reaching over the table and nudging him, looking at his friend for a few moments and then instantly looking back to her. "You know her?"

James shrugged, "Not really. She and Lily were friends back when she was in Hogwarts. I had a class to two with her."

"Was she in our year?"

"Nope, she graduated last year."

Sirius nodded a couple times and look back in the girls' direction, only to see that they were walking back over. Lily had a huge smile on her face while the other girls' smile was smaller and more crooked looking, though still as happy as Lily's. When they walked over, Lily pulled out the chair Sirius was very comfortably leaning on for the girl to sit. He shot his red-haired friend a look to which she just shrugged in response. Next to him, the girl sat down and leaned back in the chair.

Looking at James she said "Well Potter, I have to admit it still shocks me to see Lily sitting so close to you, and willingly too. How'd you finally do it?" her voice was smooth and a bit on the lower side, but sounded attractive none the less.

James shook his head, "I wish I knew."

"Corrie," Lily asked, "Do you know Sirius?"

She looked at him with bright blue eyes that, very obviously, scanned him from head to toe just as he had done to her. But she made no effort to be modest about it, something he got the feeling that was how she did most things. When her eyes landed back on his she quirked up one eyebrow. "Well, he sort of made it a point that everyone _did_ know him." Corrie looked back at her friend. "But no, not really, I only knew him through stories. Though most of them were yours when you would complain day in and day out about both of them."

Sirius sat up, leaning on the table they all sat at. "And what does that mean, exactly? That I 'made it a point'?"

Corrie was doing a poor job of holding back a smirk when she answered with "Let's just say that you obviously wanted your reputation to be as big as your ego."

Lily let out a loud laugh that slightly hushed most of the bar, while James almost spit out his drink and started choking once he tried to stop himself. Corrie looked very satisfied with herself and even she laughed softly. Sirius had been right; she would obviously _never_ give him the time of day.

He'd never been so interested in getting to know a girl in his entire life.

After their meeting at the bar, Lily and Corrie had been talking as if they were in school again. James told Sirius that they probably saw each other about once a week. He also said that he never thought Lily would have never been such good friends with someone who gave as much of a damn as they did, being the goody-goody she'd been in school and Sirius agreed. There had been a few times that he'd been over when Corrie came over to meet up with Lily. She only blew him off, which only made her more desirable to him.

Eventually he decided to call her on the phone (a Muggle device he'd recently invested in out of curiosity). He'd gotten her phone number from Lily's address book he'd peeked in once. Of course that wasn't why he'd decided to look in it. He dialed the number and was very pleased with himself when it began to ring. Waiting and waiting, ring after ring, he began to grow inpatient. That is, until he heard some unidentifiable noise and then a very simple

"Yes?"

"What are you doing on Friday?" he asked, saying nothing more

He faintly heard her laugh, "Having lunch with the queen in Rome. Who is this?"

Sirius could feel a smile begin to form on his face. "Tell me what you're actually doing on Friday, first?"

"How'd you get my number, Sirius?" she asked him, "Because as far as I can remember, I didn't give it to you."

"You didn't."

There was a slight pause, followed by a sigh. "I'm _supposed_ to go visit my sister in London."

Well there goes that idea.

"Oh, right, okay."

"Do you actually think I'm _going_?" she asked with a slight laugh in her voice. "Why are you asking, anyway?"

He leaned on the wall next to him and rubbed the back of his neck. "I was thinking that we could-"

"Pick me up at 7." She told him, "You can get my address the same way you got my number."

There was a click, then silence.

* * *

6:54. Sirius had been standing in front of her house for a few minutes already. He just stood there, confused with himself, starring at the maroon painted house. Was Sirius Black nervous for a _date_? No, impossible. Certainly he was psychically incapable of being _nervous_ for a _date_. If that's what it even was, which he was determined to make sure it was. He shook his head a few times and laughed a bit. "She's just a girl" he told himself as he walked up the four steps that led to her front door and knocked three times. A few moments later there was a thud, followed by a hissed " _shit_ " from inside. Then the door flung open.

She almost smiled at him once the door was all the way open. "I was wondering when you would actually come inside instead if starring at my house."

Corrie turned and walked back inside, leaving the door open for him to do the same. He closed it behind him and looked around the small room. On one end was a living room and the other a bottom of a stair case, and an archway that led to a dining room in the middle. She went to a small table next to the only couch in sight and reached for the picture that lay face down on the floor in front of it.

"Is that what that noise was, then?" he questioned while she inspected the glass for scratches

"You'd think after owning the bloody thing for a month I'd remember it's there. But apparently not." She sat it back down on the table and crossed the room to the staircase where her jacket and purse hung. He bent over slightly to see the picture she'd knocked over.

It was of a boy and a girl who he instantly recognized as Corrie, despite the number of years that had obviously passed. Her hair was shorter and her face younger, but there was no doubt in his mind it was her. Laughing and putting his arm around her shoulders was a boy who stood an inch or two taller than her with a dark crew cut and dark eyes.

"Who's that?" he asked, standing fully again and turning to face her.

She looked up from the zipper of her jacket to the picture again. There was a clear hesitation before she answered with "Oh, that, uh, that's my brother."

Sirius quirked an eyebrow at her, "You're brother?" he asked, "He looks nothing like you."

"You seem to have forgotten about a place called an adoption agency." She said with a fake irritated tone. "Now, are we leaving or not?"

As much as she didn't seem to want to admit it, it was a date. He knew it, she knew it, and everyone they passed knew it. He opened doors for her, paid every last bit they were charged the whole night, and shot several dirty looks to men they passed who seemed too interested in Corrie for his liking. She, of course, pretended not to notice this. Getting her to talk about herself or her family practically took all night. She said that her father was dead, that he'd been killed by Death Eaters when she was young because he knew too much, and that her sister had moved to London to take better care of their mother. Nothing was mentioned about the brother she claimed to have.

As time passed by they continued to see each other, never once labeling their relationship to anyone. Or at least until she got a phone call from her sister while he was over. In the other room he could just hear her on the phone saying "Laura I can't really talk right now… well, I mean, I have someone over, so yes… so what if it _is_ my boyfriend… shut up, I'll call you tomorrow or something." It hadn't gotten any easier to get her to talk about herself, so he didn't know as much about her as he would have liked to. Which was quite unfair considering Lily had basically told her his whole life story.

He was beginning to think he'd never learn anything really juicy about her. At least that's what he thought until he briefly mentioned to Lily the picture of her and her 'brother'. She told him what he already knew; that they were nowhere near related. What he didn't know was that his name was Tony Madison, a boy two years older than Corrie, whom she'd dated halfway through her fourth to the end of her fifth. Lily also told him that he'd died shortly after his graduation, and she wasn't completely sure how true it was, but that she'd heard rumors that he'd killed himself

It wasn't too long after he learned this that Corrie had moved in with him. And living with her was an entirely different world from just dating her. Before it had almost taken two hours to convince her to stay the night. She said she was worried she'd miss an important owl or phone call, but how much she persisted clearly showed it was more than that. It was very clear to him that she was afraid of getting close to him.

That's why it was so surprising how much that changed when they started living together. She was more soft and less salty, but not by _that_ much. But she had dropped the façade that she didn't care, or that he annoyed her to death. Hints of it still showed when they were out, but when it was just them they were something out of a sappy muggle movie. It would have disgusted both of them if they weren't so happy.

Sirius became more and more sure of one thing with every day that passed; he loved her. He loved her more than his entire family put together, which wasn't saying much but it sounded dramatic. And he'd never been more scared in his entire life. Living in a house with his mother was nothing compared to the constant fear he had of losing her.

"Marry her, then." James said when Sirius had voiced his concern.

He laughed in response, "You're actually suggesting that _I_ get married? Have you meet me? I'm the bloke who everyone knows will never get married."

James shrugged at this, "Yeah, well, no one ever thought you'd fall in love either. And here we are."

So he thought about it. He thought about it for a long time, too. He'd been going out a lot so he could think in peace and with no distractions. To bars, to parks, to restaurants, to cafes. Anywhere and everywhere. The more he thought about it, the more he realized just how crazy he was about her. And she knew, too. He'd said it enough times for her to. But the more he thought about it, the more stubborn the negative part of him became. 'She'll laugh at you' it said, 'she'll leave you and you'll never see her again.'

After coming home from a bar (where he just stared at a wall for half an hour) one particular day he expected her to be out. She said the night before that she had to get something for someone in her distant family's new kid so she could send it to them. But when he walked into their apartment he saw both her jacket which she wore 90% of the time and her bag on top of it, he knew that she hadn't gone out yet. He tugged his jacket off and tossed it on the back of the couch. And then he heard it.

A sniffle.

His first thought was that she must have been sick. It would explain why she hadn't left yet. He walked to the kitchen, one room over, and there she was. She was leaning on the counter with her back to him. He knew she was on the phone because he could hear a loud and slightly raspy voice from where he stood. The person she was talking to must've been holding their phone too close.

"You've never done anything for me, Cortney." He heard, "You know, you _always_ put yourself first."

"That's not true mother." She said. Corrie's voice was quiet, shaky, and strained.

A wave of panic washed over him instantly. So strong he felt as though it could have knocked him to the ground. He'd known her just over a year and he never, not once, saw her cry. In fact, he'd never even _heard_ of her crying. But he knew for sure that's what she was doing. She'd always said her mother got to her; calling her 'Courtney' despite her repeatedly asking her not to, always favoring her older sister, things like that. But he quickly figured out there was much more to their relationship.

"Well of course it's true." Her mother said, "You moved out the second you could and never looked back. You hardly call, let alone visit."

Corrie sighed, "I've had a lot going on."

"Laura tells me that you've got some sort of boyfriend now, too. When was I going to hear about this?"

"When you stopped trying to make a point to ruin things that make me happy."

"Stop being so bloody dramatic, Courtney." Her mother snapped at her. "I'm just looking out for you, something I've had to do since you got involved with that Madison boy. You knew he was troubled when you met him, you told me so, what did you expect?"

Corrie sighed angrily, "I thought you would actually be _happy_ for me that I found someone who enjoys my company. I was wrong then and clearly I'm wrong now." He watched as her shoulders began to shake as her voice became more strained. "You've never had anything nice to say about anything I've ever done. I don't know what you want me to do anymore."

"I want you to stop being so stupid and think of me for once."

Sirius had taken two steps forward and bumped into a chair, which made a loud scraping sound that rang throughout the house. Corrie practically jumped out of her skin and whipped around with almost animal-like reflexes. She stared at him with saucer sized, bright red, and lightly puffy eyes which had tear streaks underneath. Her cheeks were bright pink and she quickly wiped them to get rid of her tears which slowly rolled down her face. Even her hair was messy, like she'd been pulling and tugging on it. Sirius had never seen anything near as heartbreaking as the sight of her then.

"Courtney? Did you hang up on me?"

She quickly shook her head, as if her mother could see her, and her eyes moved to the floor. "N-no, I'm here."

"Well are you going to come see your mother before she dies or not?"

Corrie cleared her throat. "I said I'd see what I can do, mum." She said softly, "I-I have to go."

She slammed the phone down, hanging it up before her mother could get a response in. He could hear her sniffling as she wiped her face again for more stray tears. Then she laughed quietly. It was short, but it sounded absolutely pathetic. "Crazy old hag." She said, just loud enough for him to hear. "She's probably still talking away."

Sirius crossed to the side of the room where she stood. He stared at her, opening his mouth to say something, anything to make her feel better. But for a moment, it was as if he had lost the ability to speak. Even if he could, though, he had no idea what he actually would say.

"You… heard what she said didn't you?" she asked, her voice almost a whisper. She refused to look at anything other than their shoes.

"Yes."

"All of it?"

"Enough of it."

Corrie shifted her weight from one leg to the other a few times. Finally, she looked up at him, with knitted eyebrows and pleading eyes. "I- I'm nothing like her, Sirius." She told him, "I swear I'm not."

"I know, love." He said before reaching out to take her hand. The second his skin touched hers, she jumped forward, throwing her arms around his neck and hiding her face in his shirt.

In only seconds her body began to shake against his. "I hate her!" she sobbed, her voice muffled slightly. "She just takes everything from me and _ruins_ it. A-and I don't think I could handle it if she ruined you too."

Sirius rubbed her back in an attempt to calm her, even in the littlest bit. "I love you, Corrie." He said, lightly kissing the top of her head. "I love you so bloody much, and there's no chance that your blasted mother could change that at all."

"How do you know?"

"Because I've never cared so damn much about someone before." He said, resting his chin on her head. "I was never able to see myself with the same person for two months, let alone nine. And I _certainly_ never imagined getting married anytime soon. Maybe ever."

Another sniffle. "And now?"

"I think that we should get married."

Saying it was not at all like how he thought it would be. He figured that after all this time of wondering and worrying, all the doubt in his mind would just become amplified once it was actually said. But when he did, he felt so… sure. More sure than he'd ever been on any test in school (which, once again, wasn't exactly saying too much). Sirius felt like a complete idiot for thinking anything other than that he wanted her forever, even if it was for a second. It was so clear to him that he didn't want anything else.

She laughed again, though this time it sounded less pathetic. "Are you telling me or asking me?"

"I'm asking you."

When she picked her head up to look at him her eyes were wide with surprise, and quickly scanned his face. She asked him if he was serious, then apologized when he rolled his eyes. But she had said yes and just like that they were engaged. Of course Sirius had waited to tell her that he'd yet to actually purchase a ring, but she just laughed when he did.

They were married in six months time.

Of course the wedding was a whole story by itself. Corrie's veil got ripped, Lily (who was the obvious choice for maid of honor) tripped and almost fell halfway up the aisle, knocking over a small flower display (which made Corrie laugh so hard she had to stop walking for a good minute and a half), Corrie's nephew Joe very loudly complained that he was bored, and several members of the Black family showed up against Sirius' wishes. Then there was Corrie's mother, who strongly reminded him of his own. Old, loud, and incredibly mean.

Their wedding had been years ago; almost five, in fact. Certainly a lot had happened since then. Corrie's mother had died from Dragon Pox, which she had since their phone call but only got diagnosed with two months later. It was surprising how long she lived with it considering how little treatment she got. Corrie hadn't been asked to speak at the funeral. Her sister, Laura, had inherited her house and a great portion of the family's money. While Corrie, on the other hand, had been left things more on the sentimental side. Such as pictures and some of her fathers' belongings.

Lily and James had also gotten married and were currently expecting a baby. Corrie, who had already been named the godmother, insisted on taking Lily out shopping often. While they were out, James and Sirius stayed back so James could panic without Lily having to see.

"Do you think I can do it?" he asked after setting down his third empty drink. "Actually be responsible for the well-being of another person. For their whole life?"

"Of course you can." Sirius told him. "Granted you're probably going to have several minor breakdowns, both of you. There'll be lots of crying, you'll sleep four hours a night between the two of you, and you'll never love someone so much and want them to just be quiet at the same time."

James rubbed the side of his head. "That sounds terrifying."

Sirius just laughed. "It is, but it'll be worth it."

The front door to James and Lily's house clicked then creaked open. Light and fast footsteps came running into the kitchen where they were. She went from the doorway to Sirius' lap in only a few seconds. "Daddy! Daddy! Mum let me get _three_ Chocolate Frogs!"

Sirius laughed and looked at his daughters chocolate covered face. "Yeah, I can see that." He said

Corrie walked into the kitchen with her hand on her waist and Lily next to her, "Lara, I told you to keep it a secret." She said. The child just laughed a little and Sirius tried to wipe her face off.

It was incredible to him just how much Larissa looked like them. Even if she was only three years old there was already so many characteristics they shared. She'd gotten her fathers' curly hair, but with her mothers' color. The color of her eyes landed somewhere between blue and grey, the perfect mix of both of them. She possessed Sirius' playful and carefree nature, but also Corrie's sharp tongue.

Sirius Black never expected to fall in love. He never thought he'd get married, especially so young. And he was sure he'd never had a child. But never had he been so happy to be wrong. Corrie was the love of his life, and Larissa was the best thing that ever happened to him. Settling down ended up to be a thousand times better than he ever imagined it to be.


End file.
